UPSC PRELIMS_POWER PLAY- AGRICULTURE SERIES ( AGMARKNET)

 Agricultural Marketing Information Network (AGMARKNET) 

• • Agmarknet portal is a govt. of India portal on agricultural marketing backed by a wide area information network connecting agricultural markets, State Marketing boards/Directorates and also providing linkages to the websites of the important National and International Organisations.
  • Launch: AGMARKNET was launched in March 2000 by the Union Ministry of Agriculture. 
  • The Portal provides both static and dynamic information relating to agricultural marketing in India . 

• The static information is about
  • infrastructure- related (Storage, warehousing, Cold Storage, grading and packing facilities)
  • Market – related (market fee/ charges, weighment, handling, market functionaries, development programmes, market laws, composition of market Committees, income and expenditure, etc) and 
  • Promotion-related information (Standards, Grades, Labelling, Sanitary and Phyto-Sanitary requirements, Pledge Financing, Marketing Credit and new opportunities available, etc.). 
• The dynamic part comprises Price-related information comprising maximum, minimum and model prices of varieties, total arrivals and dispatches with destination.
• The portal is run by the Directorate of Marketing & Inspection with the technical assistance of NIC as consultant on Turn-key basis. 
• The Agriculture Produce Markets enters the data in the prescribed format, using the customized application software “Agmark” 
• CODEX, FAO,APEDA, Trade Online, Commodities Exchanges like National Commodity & Derivatives Exchange Limited (NCDEX), The National Multi Commodity Exchange of India Ltd. (NMCE), and other related marketing organizations/Institutions are linked with this website.
• The main users of Agmarknet website are Farmers , Traders, Research Institutes, Exporters, Commodity Boards/Various Government Departments, ECO-STAT. 
• The linkages are also provided to Kisan, Krishi World, Indian Agro-net, Agriwatch, Indian Dairy Industry, Agro-India, Forwards Markets Commission, National Multi Exchange of India Limited and NCDEX through the portal to form a close user-group
• The portal provides information on commodity profiles, reports of important research studies, CODEX Standards of agricultural commodities, markets profile, etc. E-mail addresses of the agencies involved in agricultural marketing sector are progressively being published for public access for facilitating direct interaction.
• The portal provides easy access to commodity-wise, variety-wise daily prices and arrivals information of more than 2000 varieties and about 300 commodities from the wholesale markets spread all over the country.
• Prices and arrivals trend reports for important commodities, futures prices from Multi Commodity Exchange of India Limited and NCDEX are being reported online on the portal.
• The Directorate of Marketing and Inspection (DMI), under the Ministry, links around 7,000 agricultural wholesale markets in India with the State Agricultural Marketing Boards and Directorates for effective information exchange. 
• This e-governance portal AGMARKNET, implemented by National Informatics Centre (NIC), facilitates generation and transmission of prices, commodity arrival information from agricultural produce markets, and web-based dissemination to producers, consumers, traders, and policy makers transparently and quickly.

Market Research and Information Network (MRIN) Scheme

• MRIN  a sub scheme of ISAM was launched in March 2000 to provide electronic connectivity to the wholesale markets of the country. 
• The objective is to collect, analyse and disseminate market information to the farmers, traders, Policy makers and other stakeholders
• The scheme is being implemented by the Directorate of Marketing & Inspection with technical assistance from the National Informatics Centre (NIC) and in association with the State Agricultural Marketing Boards/Directorates and APMCs